Method for dewatering previously-dewatered municipal waste-water sludges using high electrical voltage

ABSTRACT

The present invention is directed to a pulsed electric-field system, apparatus and method for the effective disinfecting and dewatering previously-dewatered, biologically active waste-water sludges (e.g., municipal waste-water sewage sludge) in an efficient manner, so as to dramatically reduce the resulting volume of the inert waste material which has to be disposed of by the municipality. The method employed sequentially consists of hydraulically pressurizing the previously dewatered sludge, pre-heating the previously dewatered sludge to a predetermined temperature range, exposing the previously dewatered sludge to a high energy pulsing electrical discharges, pressure separation of the resulting solids and liquid fraction, and final pressure extrusion of the separated solids through nozzles.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 08/552,226, filed onNov. 1, 1995 now Pat. No. 5,695,650.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed to the discovery that the majority ofthe water contained in municipal waste-water sludge treated by themunicipal treatment plants is contained within and between molecularcells. The water molecules contained within the cell, for purposes ofthis application, shall be referred to as "intra-cellular" watermolecules, while the water molecules between the cells and boundthere-at via both mechanical and electrical bonding shall be referred toas "intercellular" water molecules. It has been the discovery that thisintra-cellular and intercellular water makes up the majority of thewater in municipal waste-water sludge treated at a municipal treatmentplant, which intra-cellular and intercellular water is not typicallyreleased by conventional, municipal dewatering methods which process themunicipal sludge.

The present invention, also, relates to a system, apparatus and methoddirected to the safe and effective treatment of previously-dewatered,biologically-active, municipal waste-water sludges, and more,particularly, to a pulsed, electric-field apparatus and related methodfor the disinfecting and dewatering of previously-dewatered, municipalwaste-water sludges in an efficient and effective manner at the level ofthe individual, molecular cells of the waste material, so as tosubstantially reduce the resulting volume and weight of the wastematerial which has to be disposed of by the municipality.

Presently, for all municipal waste-water sewage material, or sludge,treatment of the waste-water sludge by the municipality is done inaccordance with applicable rules and regulations. However, there remainsa residual bio-solids waste material which contains a significant amountof water that has to be eventually disposed of by the municipality in anenvironmentally-safe manner. Prior to disposing of this bio-solids wastematerial, the municipality will attempt to dewater this bio-solids wastematerial to the maximum extent possible, in order to reduce its disposalcost and any environmental impact. Conventional dewatering techniquesthat are utilized by the municipal waste-water treatment plants arecommonly referred to as (i) a "belt filter" type press, which is asystem of multiple rollers and mesh belts through which the bio-solidswaste material is caused to travel between, and which cooperate tosqueeze some of the water from the bio-solids waste material; or (ii) adedicated, in-line, centrifuge apparatus of some sort, which usescentrifugal force to squeeze some of the water from the bio-solids wastematerial; or (iii) a plate and frame filter press with hydraulic ormechanical drive, which uses mechanical pressure to dewater discretebatches of the bio-solids waste material. On a typical day in a typicaltreatment-plant, the bio-solids waste sludge that is treated by themunicipality will result in a material mixture containing greater than90% water-content, and less than 10% solids-content prior to thedewatering process by the municipality. Following the dewateringoperation, there is nevertheless a relatively high water contentremaining in the resulting, residual, bio-solids waste material, whichresidual will be concentrated to a mixture containing about 65% to 80%water-content and about 20% to 35% solids-content at the output-end ofthe municipality's waste-water treatment apparatus.

An underlying technical problem not addressed nor appreciated byconventional dewatering techniques is that most of the water remainsassociated with the biologically-active cells which comprise theresidual bio-solids waste material; a significant amount of the totalwater remains inside the cells of this residual bio-solids wastematerial. That is, water molecules exist on the outside of the cells ofthe bio-solids waste material, and water molecules also exist on theinside of the cells of the bio-solids waste material. Also, watermolecules are bonded between the cells of the bio-solids waste material.Therefore, since the individual cells of the sludge containing the waterare not dewatered using conventional dewatering techniques, as theindividuals cells have not been irreparably ruptured as a result of theconventional dewatering techniques currently used, so that most of thewater in the aggregate within the matrix structure of each cell, itwould be highly advantageous if this previously-dewatered, residualbio-solids waste-material sludge could be further dewatered in acontinuous and extended manner by substantially removing the waterlocated within the cellular matrix, in a commercially available process.This new approach to the further dewatering at the cellular level of theresidual bio-solids waste material would result in achieving asubstantially-reduced volume and mass of the residual waste materialrequiring disposition by the municipality at the end of its waste-watertreatment cycle. Especially when compared to conventional dewateringtechniques presently utilized by municipalities, the reduction in theoverall volume and weight associated with this residual bio-solids wastematerial, will result in a significant cost-savings to each municipalityas a result of the expected future costs per ton of disposingsubstantially less residual bio-solids waste material in anenvironmentally safe manner, as proscribed by applicable rules andregulations.

After many years of study and public hearings, the EPA has recentlypromulgated EPA 503 regulations that have changed the applicable ruleswith respect to the disposition of bio-solids waste material bymunicipalities. The EPA 503 regulations address and promote the safe andeffective disposal of bio-solids waste material by municipalities inaccordance with the underlying rational and supporting facts of definingtwo different classes of residual bio-solids waste material, Class "A"and Class "B", and of the need to have an underlying, regulatory processwhich adopts a different, regulatory approach for each of the twoclasses of residual bio-solids waste material, and, thereafter, closelyregulating the acceptable avenues of disposal for each of the twoclasses of bio-solids waste material. The difference between Class "A"bio-solids waste material and Class "B" bio-solids waste materials isdirected to the active burden facing the disposal thereof. Class "A"bio-solids waste material is a biologically-inert, non-active wastematerial, and there are no limitations on the disposition of Class "A"bio-solids waste material by the municipality. However, Class "B"bio-solids waste material is a biologically-active waste material, whichmay be pathogenic, and, as a result, the disposition of Class "B"bio-solids waste material by the municipality is accomplished in aregulatory manner that is consistent with a highly controlled andregulated commodity at appropriate dump sites.

Prior to the recent promulgation of EPA 503 regulations,municipally-treated waste-material, both raw and previously dewatered,biologically active, non-sterile, residual bio-solids waste, could bedisposed of by the local municipality by lake, ocean or river dumping;this often resulted in the unfortunate result that the various watersused for disposal would become wild with algae bloom, and the like,indicating severe nutrient enrichment of the water, to the detriment ofadjacent land owners and downstream water users. Now, EPA 503regulations effectively prohibit the disposal of any residual bio-solidswaste material by municipalities in this manner. After the promulgationof EPA 503 regulations, there are currently only three approved optionsthat can be used for the disposal of bio-solids waste material, namely:(1) incineration; the burning of bio-solids waste material in accordancewith existing rules and regulations; (2) landfilling; there are nowspecialized landfills (e.g., Class D landfills) that to which themunicipality can transport the bio-solids waste material for disposal;and (3) land application; where the bio-solids material is used as afertilizer and/or soil enhancer. Option (3), land application, isgoverned by the classification of the residual bio-solids material,Class "A" or Class "B". From the viewpoint of the municipality, thisdual classification of bio-solids waste material presents theopportunity to utilize new technology to solve the bio-solids wastedisposal problem as a result of EPA 503 regulations. Of the aboveoptions, (1) and (2) above are the most expensive, with all of theinherent characteristics associated with a very highly regulatoryenvironment. Obviously, it would be a great advantage if a municipalitycould end up with a process to treat previously dewatered waste materialin a manner which will safely and effectively convert, at the cellularlevel, Class "B" bio-solid waste material, which is high regulated withrespect to the disposal thereof by the municipality, into a safe Class"A" bio-solids waste material, which the municipality can then disposeof in any permissible environmentally safe manner, which allows themunicipality to dispose of the solids waste material in a less costlyand less regulated manner. Such a novel disinfecting and dewateringprocess would operate at the cellular level of the bio-solids wastematerial to rupture the cell wall in a manner non-repairable by the cellstructure, thereby facilitating the internal water and related materialswithin the cell to be squeezed out of the cell structure, so that suchis no longer actively contained within the cell structure by the cell.The resulting material is a safe, biologically-inert, solid material.

Furthermore, if such a novel disinfecting and dewatering process couldbe easily added to existing municipal waste-water sewage treatmentplants in a manner which would not require any redesign of thewaste-water treatment process or facility, local regulatory approval,and in a manner to facilitate a non-disruptive convenient retrofitableadd-on module without any disruption to the municipality's on-goingoperations with respect to its existing and regulated waste-water sewagetreatment facility at the very end of existing waste-water treatmentfacilities, such would be a great advantage to the industry.

It is known to kill indigenous microorganism, inoculated listeria,yeasts and molds in a pumpable material, such as milk, juice, raw eggs,and the like, by exposing the material to multiple, short pulses ofelectrical energy in the range of 10-30 KV. range. The electrical fieldpierces through, and, finally, causes the irreparable rupture of theaffected cells of the microorganisms. By breaking down these cells, andpreventing their self-repair mechanisms from repairing the cell-membranedamage, the food-product is safer, and the shelf-life of the product isextended. An example of this process in disclosed in U.S. Pat. No.5,048,404.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, a general object of the present invention is to provide forthe further dewatering of previously-dewatered, bio-solids, municipalwaste-water sludge.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide for thedisinfecting of previously-dewatered, bio-solids municipal waste-watersludge.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a low costconversion of Class "B" bio-solids to Class "A" bio-solids.

A still further object of the present invention is to provide adensified and pelletized end-product suitable for convenient storage andland application without need of specialized equipment.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a methodfor intercepting previously-dewatered bio-solids, municipal waste-watersludge prior to the disposal thereof, without interrupting the processflow of the municipal waste-water treatment plant.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a methodfor pressurizing the bio-solids municipal waste-water sludge to anoperating pressure of 1000 to 2000 psi.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide, in thepreferred embodiment, a method for thermally conditioning the bio-solidsflow to an operating temperature of 40° to 60° C.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a methodfor cellular rupture via high voltage D.C. pulse at an amplitude of25,000 to 100,000 volts/CM, or of a variable and sufficient duration.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a methodfor separation of solids and liquids within the bio-solids flow.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a methodfor extrusion of pressurized, thermally conditioned, electricallydisrupted and separated bio-solids flow into pellets of various sizegeometries.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a methodfor collection, metering, and return to process of the separated liquidfraction of the bio-solids flow.

It is still another object of the present invention to treat animal andplant wastes, besides municipal waste-water sludge with the method andapparatus of the invention.

In accordance with an illustrative embodiment of the present inventionthere is provided a pulsed electric-field system for the disinfectingand dewatering of biologically-active, previously-dewatered, waste-watersludge material, comprising in combination: means for pressurizing thewaste material to a predetermined range of pressurization; means forheating the waste material to a predetermined temperature range, theheating means operatively coupled to the pressurization means; means forconverting the biologically-active waste material into inert material,the conversion means operatively coupled to the heating means; means forfiltering the inert waste material in a predetermined manner, thefiltering means operatively coupled to the converting means; and meansfor discharging the inert waste material in a predetermined manner, thedischarge means operatively coupled to the filtering means, whereby thebiologically-active waste material is transformed into inert wastematerial and the resulting volume of inert waste material requiringdisposition is substantially reduced.

Briefly, according to one embodiment of the present invention, a methodis further provided for the disinfecting and dewatering ofbiologically-active previously dewatered waste-water sludge material,comprising the steps of: pressurizing the waste material to apredetermined range of pressurization; if necessary, heating the wastematerial to a predetermined temperature range, the heating stepoperatively coupled to the pressurization step; converting thebiologically-active waste material into inert material, the conversionstep operatively coupled to the heating step; filtering the inert wastematerial in a predetermined manner, the filtering step operativelycoupled to the converting step; and discharging the inert waste materialin a predetermined manner, the discharge step operatively coupled to thefiltering step, whereby the biologically-active waste material istransformed into inert waste material and the resulting volume of inertwaste material requiring disposition is substantially reduced. Thismethod is called electroporation.

Other objects, features, and advantages of this invention will becomeapparent from the following detailed description of the preferredembodiment of this invention, as illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The foregoing summary, and other objects, features, and advantages ofthe present invention, its organization, construction and operation,together with further objects and advantages thereof, will be bestunderstood from an examination of the following description of thepreferred embodiment of the invention will be better understood whenread in connection with the accompanying drawings. For the purpose ofillustrating the invention, there is shown in the drawings an embodimentwhich is presently preferred, it being understood, that the invention isnot limited to the specific methods and apparatus disclosed.

FIG. 1 is a flow schematic of the process of the invention;

FIG. 2A is a proximate-to-scale, general arrangement of the system ofthe invention;

FIG. 2B is an elevational view of the pelletizing-heads section of theapparatus of FIG. 2A;

FIG. 2C is a front, elevational view of the discharging conduits fromthe pelletizing-heads section of FIG. 2B to a collector;

FIG. 3 is an elevational cross-sectional view showing the generalarrangement of the disrupter cell; and

FIG. 4 is an elevational cross-sectional view showing the generalarrangement of the filtration module.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Referring to the drawings in greater detail, wherein like-referencednumerals indicate like elements throughout, there is shown in FIGS. 1and 2A the apparatus 10 of the invention for dewateringpreviously-dewatered municipal waste-water sludge, or for treatinganimal and/or plant waste. The apparatus 10 of the invention is added onto the outlet of a conventional municipal waste-water treatment plantfor dewatering bio-solids sludge. Thus, the apparatus 10 is a secondary,or tertiary, system for the further dewatering of previously-dewateredsludge that has been dewatered by a primary system. It is, of course,possible to use the apparatus 10 alone, so that it serves as the onlydewatering system; however, owing to financial restraints, it isenvisioned that the apparatus 10 will serve to further dewaterpreviously-dewatered sludge.

A conventional municipal waste-water treatment plant typically comprisesbelt filter presses, centrifuges, plate and frame, or other,conventional dewatering technologies that discharge the sludge-materialvia conveyor to a storage bin, hopper, container or truck body forintermediate retention prior to transit for off-site disposal. Such aconveyer is indicated by reference numeral 11 in FIG. 1, and itconstitutes the outlet, or end-point, at which the conventionaldewatering technique terminates, and the apparatus 10 of the presentinvention begins to function. According to the invention, instead of theoutput of the conveyer 11 being fed to a truck, or the like, foroff-site disposal, it is instead directed to the inlet of the apparatus10 of the invention by means of a variety of standard, material-handlingequipment and methods that discharge the output from the conveyer 11into the input of the apparatus 10 of the present invention.

The input of the apparatus of the invention is a conically-shaped hopper12 with spiral feed 14. This conically-shaped hopper with spiral feed 12will uniformly charge, or load, the previously-dewatered, bio-solidswaste-water sludge exiting the conventional dewatering apparatus viaconveyer 11 into a double-screw auger feed-section 16 having ahydraulically driven, self-priming positive displacement pump 18, suchas Abel Pumps Corporation's Model "SH" with cone valves, whereby thethick-consistency sludge is pressurized. This pressurized environment isimportant in order to create the driving force to the filter at the endof the process (discussed hereinbelow), and, also, so that the sludgemay be heated without causing the generation of steam, which, ifproduced, would be detrimental to proper disposal. The double-screwauger feed-section 16 can also be utilized to introduce various alkalineor acidic chemicals to enhance the electroporation effect of thedisrupter cell, discussed hereinbelow, or to modify the PH of thebio-solids to conform to the intended land use application, or toenhance the dewatering effect of the filtration module. Thepreviously-dewatered, bio-solids, waste-water sludge is alternatelydrawn through one of two suction valves, and then into one of two pumpcavities 20, 22, and pumped through one or two discharge valves into acommon discharge port 23. The pump pistons 24, 26 are driven byhydraulic cylinders 24', 26' via piston rods 24", 26". The hydrauliccylinders are powered by a conventional hydraulic power-package 28. Inthe preferred embodiment, the common discharge port 23 is connected viapiping 30 to the inlet of a helical heat exchanger 32, such as thatmanufactured by Graham Manufacturing Company, Model "Helixflow". Theheating source 34 to the exchanger is preferable low pressure steam. Theexiting bio-solids sludge temperature is controlled via a standardthermostatic steam valve-control to a range of between 40 degrees C. and60 degrees C. Temperatures below 40 degrees C. tend to depress theelectroporation effect of the disruptor cell, while temperatures above60 degrees C. tend to "scale" certain types of bio-solids to theinterior of the walls of the heat exchanger. The electroporation effectis not noticeably enhanced at temperatures above 40 degrees C. In thosecases where the bio-solids sludge is of such a consistency that itreadily and easily flows without having to raise its temperaure, thenthe step of heating the bio-solids sludge, and the equipment describedabove for heating it, may be dispensed with. The heat exchanger, also,incorporates a vent to collect various off-gasses resulting from theheating process, in a conventional manner. The off-gasses are preferablycollected via a vacuum pump for subsequent, ambient discharge ortreatment as dictated by the content of the off-gasses. The main purposeof venting is that the electroporation performance can be enhanced byeliminating as much air as possible from the sludge material, and sothat, as the material is heated in the heat exchanger, there will not beincluded vapors created.

From the heat exchanger 32, the thermally conditioned bio-solidscontinue under pressure through interconnecting piping 40 to thedisrupter cell 42, best seen in FIG. 2A and 3. The disruptor cell 42consists of an electrically-grounded, cylindrically-shaped, outermetallic shell or annular pipe 44, with an internal,electrically-insulated, high voltage electrode 46. The electrode designis such as to provide laminar flow characteristics over its leadingsurface into an approximate 3/8" (1 cm) annulus between it and theannular pipe 44, to thereby create a uniform disruption zone. The highvoltage electrode 46 is preferably generated, or pulsed, in a uni-polaror bi-polar mode, and at an amplitude of 25,000 to 100,000 volts percentimeter, at a frequency of 3 to 5 hertz, althought other frequenciesmay be employed, and for a duration dependent upon the characteristicsof the bio-solids material being treated. Thus, the laminar-flowingsludge is subject to what may be called an "electro-baric" field, whichis an electric field exposed to constant-pressure flowing media. Aconventional, solid-state pulse generator 48 having a capacitivedischarge circuit receives power from a power supply 50. Power switchingis accomplished via a spark gap, "Thiotron", or solid state switch. Thepulse control unit, the power supply and switching sub-system arestandard commercially available items regularly used in the electricpower, laser, and biotechnology industries.

The controlling principle at work within the disruptor cell iselectroporation. During the electroporation process, sufficient voltagepotential develops along the molecular cell wall to result in animbalance of forces, which causes the rupture of the molecular cellwall. Upon rupture, the cell undergoes "lysis", which is the loss ofintra cellular fluids and materials. As lysis continues, the cell dies,and its liquid content is released, which liquid content is mostly watermolecules. In addition, high voltage discharges releases or breaks intercellular water mechanical/electrical bonds. After this disruptionoccurs, the bio-solids material becomes sufficiently biologically inertto meet Class "A" EPA 503 standards, and, is suitable for extendeddewatering.

The disruptor cell 42 is directly connected to, and longitudinallyaxially in-line with, a filtration module 52 consisting of twoelectrically charged metal filtration membranes 52', 52", and which isbest seen in FIGS. 2A and 4. The outer, filtering membrane 52' is aconcentric cylinder, or porous metal pipe, while the inner, filteringmembrane 52" is an expanding, frustoconical-shaped metal member, suchthat the annular region between the inner and outer filtering elementsgradually and continually narrows or tapers along the length of flow inthe filtration module. This geometry between the two filtering elementscreates a continual decreasing cross-sectional area along the length ofthe filtration module. The concentric filtration surfaces conserveoverall space while optimizing a characteristic of bio-solids underpressure, which characteristic is the migration and adherence of liquidsto a contact surface, whereby the liquid water is separated from thesolid content of the waste. The metal filter membranes that may be usedare those manufactured by the Porous Metal Components division of NewmetKrebsoge, Deerfield, Ill.

The use of low voltages for aiding in filtration is a well-known methodof separating out particles from water, and is also utilized on thefiltration surfaces of the filters 52', 52", and produced vialow-voltage supply 61. The filtration cell is operated at a pressure ofbetween 1000 to 1500 psi, depending upon the desired level of additionaldewatering, and the clarity of the liquid filtrate. The liquid filtrateis collected from the tapering inner metal membrane filter 52" and theparallel outer metal membrane filter 52' via a liquid-collectionassembly 60, which consists of an external drain pan 62 and an internaldrain 64 combining to a common drain to a liquid metering unit 66. Theliquid metering unit is conventional instrumentation, and is used tomonitor system performance. The liquid meter discharges to the returnpiping 68 of the apparatus. The tapering or narrowing annular regionbetween the two membranes causes a constant pressure on the sludge as itflows. The operating pressures within the annular region between the twometal membranes will be between 1000-1500 psi, which causes anyremaining water in the sludge to be "squeezed out".

The disinfected and twice-dewatered bio-solids material exits thefiltration module through a pelletizing head 70 with a rotating cutterassembly 72, as best seen in FIGS. 2A and 4, and then conveyed in acollector-conveyer 73 for subsequent disposal. The bio-solid material isbiologically inert, since, whereas a normal healthy bacteria or virushas DNA which is reproducible, once the DNA mechanism for the bacteriaor virus is broken, as occurs in the present invention, the resultingbiological material is inert thereafter. The pelletizing head consistsof a plurality of circular plates each having a circular array of holescoincident with the annular, exit-flow channel of the filtration module.The rotating cutter assembly shears the extruded bio-solids into pelletswhich drop onto the solids-collection conveyor which transfer thedisinfected, twice-dewatered, volume/mass reduced bio-solids to theexisting storage bin, hopper, container, or truck body for intermediateretention prior to transit for off-site disposal.

Almost all cells in the sludge are greater than 1/2 micron in size, andthe majority of are greater than 1 micron in size, and some are as greatas 3 to 5 micron range. Preferably, each of the metal filter membranes56', 56" will typically be a 10-micron mesh.

The metal membranes 56', 56" will have to be cleaned periodically. To dothis, scrapers would be provided. Alternatively, back-pulsing the metalmembranes with steam may be used.

It is also noted that the discovery of the present invention--which is,that the majority of the water contained in municipal waste sludge isintracellular--may be carried out using other techniques for irreparablyrupturing the cell membranes. For example, ultrasonic waves may beemployed.

The aspects of the present invention which are believed to be novel areset forth with particularity in the appended claims. While a specificembodiment of a novel pulsed electro-baric system, associated apparatus,and related method, for the disinfecting and dewatering of previouslydewatered municipal residual waste-water sludge material has beendescribed for the purpose of illustrating the manner in which theinvention may be used and made, it should be understood that althoughthe invention has been described by reference to particular embodimentsthereof, many changes and modifications of the invention may becomeapparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the spiritand scope of the invention. All such modifications and changes as mayreasonably and properly be included within the scope of our inventionare intended to be included herein. Therefore, this invention should notbe limited in scope to the particular embodiments shown and describedherein, but only by the true spirit and scope of the basic underlyingprinciples disclosed in the claims that follow.

I claim:
 1. A method of dewatering municipal waste sludge or plant andanimal waste sludge containing intra-cellular water molecules containedin molecular cellular units of the waste sludge, or plant and animalwaste sludge, comprising:(a) pumping the waste sludge into a dewateringapparatus; (b) destroying in the dewatering apparatus at least most ofthe individual cellular units of the waste sludge in order to releasethe intra-cellular water molecules contained therein; and (c) separatingthe resulting released water content from the resulting solid contentfor subsequent collection; said step (b) comprising irreparablyrupturing the membrane of each of at least the majority of molecularcellular units of the waste sludge in order to release theintra-cellular water molecules contained therein by electroporating eachmembrane; said step of electroporating comprising passing the wastesludge through an electric field; said step of separating comprisingpassing the mixture of released water and solid content between an innerporous pipe and an outer porous pipe.
 2. The method of dewatering wastesludge containing intra-cellular water molecules according to claim 1,further comprising:(d) before said step (a), initially dewatering thewaste sludge; said step (b) being performed on previously-dewateredwaste sludge.
 3. The method of dewatering waste sludge containingintra-cellular water molecules according to claim 1, wherein said step(b) is performed on previously-dewatered waste sludge.
 4. The method ofdewatering waste sludge containing intra-cellular water moleculesaccording to claim 1, wherein said step (c) comprises pressurizing themixture of released water and solid content in order to force themigration and adherence of the released water to a contact surface,whereby the liquid water is separated from the solid content of thewaste sludge.
 5. A method dewatering waste sludge that containsintra-cellular water molecules contained in cellular units of the wastesludge, comprising:(a) directing the flow of the waste sludgelongitudinally, axially against a closed end of an inner pipe; (b)thereafter, causing the waste sludge to flow through an annular flowvolume between the inner pipe and an outer pipe that isconcentrically-mounted about the inner pipe; and (c) irreparablyrupturing the membranes of the cellular units of the waste sludge bypassing said sludge through an electric field having a voltage of atleast 25,000 volts per centimeter.
 6. A method of dewatering wastesludge containing intra-cellular water molecules contained in molecularcellular units of the waste sludge water, comprising:(a) pumping wastesludge into a dewatering apparatus; (b) destroying in the dewateringapparatus at least most of the individual cellular units of the wastesludge in order to release the intra-cellular water molecules containedtherein; and (c) separating the resulting released water content fromthe resulting solid content for subsequent collection; said step (b)comprising irreparably rupturing the membrane of each of at least themajority of molecular cellular units of the waste sludge in order torelease the intra-cellular water molecules contained therein byelectroporating each membrane with an electric field; said step (b)comprising pumping the waste sludge against a spherical closed end of aninner pipe at which said step of electroporating each membrane iscarried out; and directing the electroporated waste sludge through anannular volume between the inner pipe and a concentrically-mounted outerpipe for subsequent separation of the water content of the waste sludgefrom its solid content.
 7. A method of dewatering municipal waste sludgeor plant and animal waste sludge containing intra-cellular watermolecules contained in molecular cellular units of the waste sludge, orplant and animal waste sludge, comprising:(a) pumping the waste sludgeinto a dewatering apparatus; (b) destroying in the dewatering apparatusat least most of the individual cellular units of the waste sludge inorder to release the intra-cellular water molecules contained therein;and (c) separating the resulting released water content from theresulting solid content for subsequent collection; said step (b)comprising irreparably rupturing the membrane of each of at least themajority of molecular cellular units of the waste sludge in order torelease the intra-cellular water molecules contained therein byelectroporating each membrane; said step of electroporating comprisingpassing the waste sludge through an electric field; said step (b)comprising:pumping the waste sludge against a spherical closed end of aninner pipe, and causing the waste sludge to assume laminar flow into anannular region between the inner pipe and an outer, concentric pipe; andexposing the laminar-flowing waste sludge to an electroporating means.